If you have a nice bike, take a moment to register it: https://bikeindex.org/
and a few other tips ~ http://blog.mattgoyer.com/archives/2013/07/22/how-to-recover...
What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
21–30 of 86 posts
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#22So what is the solution to bikes getting stolen? It seems like we cannot really make locks that are cheap enough to manufacture to prevent thieves from stealing bikes/harvesting them for parts. Do we put GPS trackers on all bikes? Can we enforce harsher punishment for bike thieves?
Harsh punishment seems ruled out by the stories of Charles Dickens. In a time when they'd hang or exile you for a loaf of bread, bread still got stolen. Theft is a crime resulting from the social context, and particularly from inequality.
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#23"... Fortunately for Rosa, the Darlings were also allegedly fencing electronics, allowing the owner of a stolen iPad to track his missing tablet to the same apartment via an iPhone app connected to his iPad’s GPS. ..." Would be a nice hack to build something like this. How would you embed a device like this into into a frame & other parts? Comments: "... Ryan Scheel: Might it make sense to put a GPS device in bikes e…
If you are serious, the answer is to make the device a 1" tube that fits into the steer tube of most bicycles and can receive and transmit RF via the top cap (which would be plastic rather than the usual metal). Easy to conceal, near-universal fit (for bikes from the last 10+ years), sufficient space for a battery, radio, no visible parts. Charge using the tube as ground and the top cap bolt as hot.
The problem is, it will cost $150 or so, plus monthly cellular data fees (you can dial 911 for free, but the police will not do anything with this).
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#24"... Fortunately for Rosa, the Darlings were also allegedly fencing electronics, allowing the owner of a stolen iPad to track his missing tablet to the same apartment via an iPhone app connected to his iPad’s GPS. ..." Would be a nice hack to build something like this. How would you embed a device like this into into a frame & other parts? Comments: "... Ryan Scheel: Might it make sense to put a GPS device in bikes e…
If you are serious, the answer is to make the device a 1" tube that fits into the steer tube of most bicycles and can receive and transmit RF via the top cap (which would be plastic rather than the usual metal). Easy to conceal, near-universal fit (for bikes from the last 10+ years), sufficient space for a battery, radio, no visible parts. Charge using the tube as ground and the top cap bolt as hot. The problem is, i…
I thought this sounded familiar, so I did some searching... here's pretty much exactly that:
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#25"... Fortunately for Rosa, the Darlings were also allegedly fencing electronics, allowing the owner of a stolen iPad to track his missing tablet to the same apartment via an iPhone app connected to his iPad’s GPS. ..." Would be a nice hack to build something like this. How would you embed a device like this into into a frame & other parts? Comments: "... Ryan Scheel: Might it make sense to put a GPS device in bikes e…
If you are serious, the answer is to make the device a 1" tube that fits into the steer tube of most bicycles and can receive and transmit RF via the top cap (which would be plastic rather than the usual metal). Easy to conceal, near-universal fit (for bikes from the last 10+ years), sufficient space for a battery, radio, no visible parts. Charge using the tube as ground and the top cap bolt as hot. The problem is, i…
>The problem is, it will cost $150 or so, plus monthly cellular data fees (you can dial 911 for free, but the police will not do anything with this).
pre-paid sms is cheap.
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
If you are serious, the answer is to make the device a 1" tube that fits into the steer tube of most bicycles and can receive and transmit RF via the top cap (which would be plastic rather than the usual metal). Easy to conceal, near-universal fit (for bikes from the last 10+ years), sufficient space for a battery, radio, no visible parts. Charge using the tube as ground and the top cap bolt as hot. The problem is, i…
I thought this sounded familiar, so I did some searching... here's pretty much exactly that: http://www.integratedtrackers.com/GPSTrack/Spybike.jsp
Wow, thanks for digging that up. It even costs $152 right now (converted from GBP). Apart from the fact that you seemingly have to remove it to charge, looks good.
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#27I follow two principles to avoid bike theft: 1. always lock both wheels and the frame up with a very thick U lock, and 2. ride a bike less expensive to replace than repair. I regularly find bikes at Goodwill, flea markets, etc that are not stolen but are dirt cheap ($50, $100, etc). Even found a banged up old bike (dead tires, bad derailleur/gears) laying in a gutter. May not be the best ride in the world but it gets you from point A to B and never gets stolen.
As for preventing theft in general, don't leave it locked up outside. That'd probably cut down on 90% of thefts. They could improve outside safety by building special wire mesh enclosures for bikes on bike racks, which would make it more difficult to steal, more obvious someone is stealing, and generally protect the bike from vandalism and the weather.
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#28So what is the solution to bikes getting stolen? It seems like we cannot really make locks that are cheap enough to manufacture to prevent thieves from stealing bikes/harvesting them for parts. Do we put GPS trackers on all bikes? Can we enforce harsher punishment for bike thieves?
I think bait bikes are a good solution. Put out a few normal looking bikes with gps trackers in them, and have stiff fines for those who get caught. Making locks safe against an angle grinder isnt really feasible, but making someone think twice before even trying because it's a bait bike might work.
I used to wonder why people would often use a natural gas main as a locking point. Now I realize that it provides a decent defence against angle grinder attacks (or at least gets any thief some public safety or trumped-up terrorism charge).
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#29I wonder to what extend the intensity of bike theft will incentivize bike users to buy and use bikes of low value. I have conflicting anecdotal experiences about this. I lived in Rotterdam, where bike theft is intense, but where people usually ride cheap bikes every day, and where you know you can buy a cheap bike to someone in the street, for a price as low a ten euros. Bikes are a cheap commodity in Rotterdam. In S…
Are lower income people in SF riding expensive bikes, or just the well-paid ones? If bike-riding is a rich person's thing in SF, then the average rider will have spare cash to throw at it, stores can focus on selling more expensive bikes, higher prices are normalised...etc.
It's mostly younger people ride bikes, but because of the availability of bike lanes and public bike racks, more and more people from all incomes are riding bikes.
Re: What happens to your bike after it’s stolen
#30So what is the solution to bikes getting stolen? It seems like we cannot really make locks that are cheap enough to manufacture to prevent thieves from stealing bikes/harvesting them for parts. Do we put GPS trackers on all bikes? Can we enforce harsher punishment for bike thieves?
Ride bikes that aren't worth stealing. When I used to bike to the train station in suburban chicago, I used an old single-speed no-name coaster-brake bike bought at a garage sale for almost nothing. I locked it with a very simple cable and padlock and nobody ever bothered it.
I'm tempted to do something like that. One thing you should be wary of is not leaving anything that can be taken off easily. If they don't take the bike, they might steal your lights or something small instead. Make sure that easily removable items are not left on the bike.